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Will The Red Wings Finally Return To The Playoffs?

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The Red Wings haven’t made the playoffs since the 2015-16 season and are hoping to break their nine-year drought this year. They came close to snapping the streak in 2023-24, finishing fifth in the Atlantic Division with 91 points, but took a step back last season, falling to sixth in the division and 86 points. This summer, they identified goaltending as an area of concern and quickly traded for veteran netminder John Gibson from the Anaheim Ducks.

Detroit also made a series of depth signings that they hope will close the gap between missing the postseason and making it. It’s hard to say whether general manager Steve Yzerman did enough to get the Red Wings over the hump, but it’s fair to say he was conservative in his approach, opting to steer clear of the heavy bidding in free agency for top-end talent. Whether that was by design or a case of circumstance is unknown, but Yzerman wasn’t able to land any big names, despite a great deal of cap space available.

Yzerman’s big move was acquiring Gibson, and he will likely team him up with fellow veteran Cam Talbot to give Detroit what they hope will be reliable goaltending. The Red Wings haven’t had a top-tier starter in quite some time, and they probably won’t rely solely on Gibson, as he’s more of a 1B option at this stage of his career. Outside of last season, he hasn’t been great since before the pandemic in 2020. Gibson’s struggles in Anaheim were well documented, and he remained with the Ducks through a significant rebuild despite their attempts to move him.

Gibson had trade protection, but his declining play over the past few seasons naturally reduced his trade value. Last season, Gibson finally posted a positive goal saved above expected at 15.3 (as per MoneyPuck). However, from 2019-24, he tallied a cumulative -60.8 goals saved above expected, which hurt his value on the trade market. If Detroit gets the 2019 to 2024 version of Gibson, it could be very problematic and might even jeopardize their season unless Talbot performs significantly better than expected. But if Gibson proves last year wasn’t a fluke and he’s recaptured his earlier form, he could be the key to helping Detroit close the gap.

From a salary cap perspective, the Red Wings facilitated the Gibson move by trading Petr Mrázek as part of the deal with Anaheim, as well as dealing Vladimir Tarasenko to the Wild in a separate agreement for future considerations. Tarasenko wasn’t a great fit in Detroit and doesn’t have good foot speed at this stage of his career. He scored just 11 goals and 22 assists last season, so his offensive output shouldn’t be too hard to replace.

Detroit hopes Mason Appleton can fill the offensive gap left by Tarasenko at a lower cost. The Red Wings signed the 29-year-old forward to a two-year, $5.8MM contract, expecting him to fit into the third line and add depth scoring. Appleton is only a year removed from a 36-point season with the Winnipeg Jets, and if he can return to that level, he will be a bargain. However, if he replicates last year’s form, at a $2.9MM cap hit, it might be hard to justify the price.

Appleton controls the puck frequently and is good at handling challenging defensive situations, but he doesn’t do a lot with the puck when he has it, so expecting him to replace Tarasenko might be a tall order. He scored 10 goals and 12 assists in 71 games last season, numbers that align more with his career averages, making those a more likely estimate of his production.

Up front, Detroit also added James van Riemsdyk and John Leonard. Leonard hasn’t played much in the NHL since a 44-game stint with San Jose during the 2020-21 season and probably won’t be a significant factor for Detroit this season. Conversely, van Riemsdyk has offered offensive value at a low cost over the past two seasons and should deliver a good return on his one-year $1MM contract. His 34 even-strength points last season are promising, and he remains a solid net-front presence despite being 36 years old. If van Riemsdyk can produce another 30-point season, he will effectively replace Tarasenko’s point production at less than 25% of the salary.

The remaining additions Detroit made this summer focused on the back end, as the Red Wings acquired a pair of former Ottawa Senators in Jacob Bernard-Docker and Travis Hamonic, along with Ian Mitchell. Bernard-Docker was a first-round pick by the Sens in 2018 but hasn’t been able to establish himself beyond a seventh defenseman. He will have every chance to do so in Detroit, as the Red Wings have a significant gap on the right side of their defense behind Moritz Seider, and Bernard-Docker could compete for one of those roles with Justin Holl, Albert Johansson, and Hamonic. Johansson, being a left-shot defenseman, could make a transition to the right side an issue, but given Detroit’s lack of depth, it might be their best option.

Speaking of Hamonic, his signing last week was somewhat unexpected, considering he isn’t particularly effective and seemed headed for a PTO this offseason. As PHR’s Josh Erickson noted at the time of the signing, “Ottawa was outscored 77-44 and out-chanced 787-635 with Hamonic on the ice at 5-on-5 in the last two years.” These figures raise concerns about whether Hamonic is to be part of Detroit’s NHL lineup, which could indicate that they have not effectively bolstered their defensive depth.

In terms of roster losses, aside from Tarasenko, the Red Wings didn’t lose much, as Alex Lyon, Jeff Petry, Craig Smith, and Tyler Motte left town. The team can easily replace these departing veterans with plenty of young talent and new faces ready to take over the roles those players held. While this summer can hardly be called a failure, it wasn’t exactly a homerun either. Detroit improved its goaltending, but Gibson isn’t a guarantee, and the defense in front of him isn’t much better than last year’s. Yzerman is counting on significant growth from young players this season, but that might not be enough to push Detroit to the next level.

Red Wings fans were probably disappointed by the lack of a high-profile signing this summer, but Detroit still has nearly $12MM in cap space (as per PuckPedia) and can make a move if it chooses to. All that to say, Yzerman not managing to lure one of the top free agents to Detroit will be seen as a failure if the team misses the playoffs again, and it might even cost him his job if necessary steps aren’t taken in the right direction.

Photo by Steven Bisig-USA TODAY Sports.

Canucks, Kraken Re-Engaging In Marco Rossi Trade Talks With Wild

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While previous reports indicated the Canucks and Kraken both had interest in acquiring Wild restricted free agent center Marco Rossi at various points during the offseason, talks have been quiet for weeks now after Minnesota didn’t land the type of offers they wanted. However, with less than a month now until training camp, they’re now restating their interest in acquiring him if “contract talks between Rossi and the Wild reach a point of no return,” a league source told RG’s James Murphy. Neither club has had intensive talks with Minnesota since mid-July at the latest, the source added.

Wild general manager Bill Guerin spoke to Murphy last week and gave a rather cliché non-update on talks with both Rossi and pending UFA superstar Kirill Kaprizov, saying there were “no real updates” on either player. The two sides haven’t had serious contract discussions since June, leaving them with little time to work out a new deal if a trade doesn’t come to fruition in the next few weeks. The latter outcome is undoubtedly the preferred outcome for both sides at this point, given how the summer has transpired, but that’s been difficult too with Rossi’s desire for a lucrative long-term commitment and the Wild’s need for a top-six forward coming the other way to stay competitive.

For those reasons, the Kraken seem like a better match on paper. As Murphy’s piece pointed out, Seattle has a nearly perfect veteran to offer to satiate Minnesota’s particular desires in Jared McCann, who they were reportedly open to moving last month.

McCann has been a staple atop Seattle’s roll-four-lines attack over the last four years as one of the crown jewels of their expansion draft haul. While he’s spent more time on the wing for the Kraken as his career has progressed, he has plenty of experience down the middle and could feasibly be a direct replacement for Rossi on the depth chart to join Joel Eriksson Ek as the Wild’s top-six pivots. The 29-year-old rattled off 61 points in 82 games last season, but that was actually his lowest per-game output since his first year in Seattle. He’s also due to reach unrestricted free agency in 2027.

While Seattle has a multitude of other veteran forwards slated to hit the open market next summer, there’s likely still an appetite from general manager Jason Botterill to better align the age of their forwards on longer-term deals to match their timeline to emerge as perennial playoff contenders – still a year or two away. Rossi, who put up a nearly identical scoring line to McCann last season and is more comfortable down the middle, would be more expensive to sign than McCann’s current $5MM cap hit but is nearly six years younger. Now entering his age-24 season, he’d be giving Seattle his prime in the middle of a cost-certain deal as the cap rises if they reached a long-term commitment out of the gate.

It’s harder to see how the Canucks could put together a competitive offer for Rossi. He would be an offensive improvement over their current young second-line piece, Filip Chytil, but his concussion history means he’s not likely to move the needle for Guerin, especially if McCann is a realistic option.

It’s also worth noting that the Kraken and Wild have already connected on a trade this summer. Seattle picked up center Frédérick Gaudreau in exchange for the 102nd overall pick in this year’s draft, which Minnesota used on skilled but undersized pivot Adam Benák.

Auston Matthews Addresses Marner Trade, Maple Leafs Trajectory

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Speaking publicly for the first time since long-time teammate Mitch Marner was traded, Toronto Maple Leafs all-star forward Auston Matthews shared his thoughts on the departure of his now former teammate. Matthews said the team will “obviously miss” Marner’s presence and referred to him as a great friend and teammate, per a video by TSN.

“That’s kind of the business side of it that is tough. Obviously, I wish him nothing but the best. But we’ll just keep it moving,” Matthews said.

Marner was acquired by the Vegas Golden Knights in a sign-and-trade deal, resulting in an eight-year, $96MM deal. And while Marner’s time in Toronto ended on a sour note, there’s no denying that his departure leaves a significant void in the Leafs’ lineup from an offensive production standpoint. Just last season, Marner produced a career-high 102 points. While Matthews alluded to an abundance of changes being made to the lineup, he noted his excitement for the team’s chances heading into the 2025-26 season.

“Obviously, a lot of changes, but I’m excited about the guys we’ve brought in. I know we have a great team and a great group of guys in the locker room. So, I’m looking forward to getting started. Guys are going to have to take some steps, but it’s a good problem to have,” he said.

The Leafs added a series of depth players this offseason. They added forward Nicholas Roy in the Marner deal. In separate trades, they acquired forwards Dakota Joshua and Matias Maccelli for draft picks, as well as defenseman Henry Thrun from the Sharks in exchange for forward Ryan Reaves. In free agency, the team signed forwards Travis Boyd, Benoit-Olivier Groulx, Vinni Lettieri, and Michael Pezzetta, as well as defenseman Dakota Mermis. The team also signed forward Matthew Knies to a six-year, $46.5MM extension. Matthews said his mindset is the same heading into this season as in seasons past, noting that despite new faces on the roster, the goal of the franchise will remain the same.

Matthews also gave a brief but reassuring update on his health heading into training camp, responding simply, ’Good,’ when asked how he was feeling. He missed 15 games last season and revealed in May that he had been dealing with a “mystery” ailment that affected him throughout both the regular season and playoffs. His quick response now appears to put to rest any lingering concerns about the issue carrying over into the new season.

Mika Zibanejad Embraces Move To Wing

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For a team in transition — including a new head coach in Mike Sullivan and the trade of longtime fan-favorite Chris Kreider — the New York Rangers are also looking to determine what position former 90-point forward Mika Zibanejad will play this upcoming season.

NHL.com’s Dan Rosen reports that Zibanejad will likely start training camp as a right wing alongside center J.T. Miller. As Rosen outlines, Zibanejad and Sullivan met in the player’s native Sweden, where Zibanejad expressed both his developing chemistry with Miller and his desire to continue playing alongside him.

“As part of that conversation, one of the things he expressed to me is even though he lined up on the wing on the face-offs, he felt they were interchangeable in the sense that they could read off each other,” Sullivan said.

Sullivan added that both players are comfortable handling faceoffs regardless of their position on the ice and playing down low in the defensive zone. To that point, Zibanejad won faceoffs last season at a 52 percent clip, one of the highest marks of his career. However, that percentage pales in comparison to Miller’s 54.3 percent career win rate, which included a 57.6 percent mark last year. Both players have also established themselves as effective penalty killers with the ability to score shorthanded goals.

And while Sullivan acknowledged a desire for Zibanejad and Miller to continue building on their pre-existing chemistry, he also noted that each centering their own line, along with Vincent Trocheck, could create a solid foundation for the top three lines.

“Those are three pretty high-quality centermen,” Sullivan said. “I think it’s going to play itself out, but certainly the conversations I’ve had with Mika to this point I would envision us exploring keeping Mika with J.T.”

Zibanejad played in all 82 games last season, recording his fifth consecutive 20-goal campaign. However, his 62 points were his lowest total since the injury-shortened 2020-21 season. The 32-year-old also produced a -22 rating (the second lowest of his career), and his average ice time of 18:46 per game was his lowest since the 2017-18 season.

Zibanejad has spent nine seasons in the Big Apple and currently ranks eighth all-time in franchise history in goals (250) and points (589). He’s also tied for sixth in franchise history with 11 shorthanded goals and tied for second with seven hat tricks.

However, the forward isn’t just a franchise fixture. He continues to produce and is only two seasons removed from a 39-goal, 91-point campaign. A return to that form, whether at center or on the wing, would go a long way toward the franchise’s goal of returning to contention.

Mammoth’s Connor Ingram Cleared By NHL/NHLPA Player Assistance Program

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August 20th: Goaltender Connor Ingram has been cleared by the NHLPA to return to the NHL per Belle Fraser of the Salt Lake Tribune. He will return to the Utah roster looking to earn the advantage back from Karel Vejmelka, who posted a 9-6-3 record and .889 save percentage in 18 games after Ingram stepped away. Both goaltenders have years of NHL experience behind them, and strong cases for manning Utah’s starting role next season.

March 9th: Utah goaltender Connor Ingram entered the NHL/NHLPA Player Assistance Program today and will be out indefinitely, Chris Johnston of TSN and The Athletic reports. In a corresponding move, the club recalled netminder Jaxson Stauber from AHL Tucson earlier Sunday.

Ingram, now 27, missed most of the 2020-21 season after entering the program while a member of the Predators organization. He later told NHL.com’s Amalie Benjamin that he sought help after dealing with undiagnosed obsessive-compulsive disorder throughout his career. After moving to the Coyotes in the 2022 offseason, he emerged as their starter for the 2023-24 campaign and won the Masterton Trophy for the “player who best exemplifies the qualities of perseverance, sportsmanship, and dedication to ice hockey” after a 23-win, six-shutout campaign.

Now the No. 2 option to Karel Vejmelka in Utah, Ingram missed over a month with the team initially termed an upper-body injury earlier in the season. Upon his return, he informed reporters his mother had passed away and, understandably, took extended time off (via Belle Fraser of the Salt Lake Tribune).

In 22 starts for the Club this season, Ingram has a 9-8-4 record, .882 SV%, and a 3.27 GAA. The 25-year-old Stauber has done quite well when called upon to elevate from his minor-league starting role, posting a .925 SV% and 2.23 GAA in four appearances earlier this season.

All of us at Pro Hockey Rumors wish Ingram the best as he takes time away from the lineup. He’ll be eligible to return to play upon the determination of program administrators.

Afternoon Notes: Savage, Milano, ECHL

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Center prospect Red Savage is set to sign a two-year deal with the AHL’s Rochester Americans, per hockey insider Ken Campbell. The Detroit Red Wings relinquished Savage’s player rights on August 15th, after choosing not to sign the 2021 fourth-round pick to his entry-level contract.

Savage’s decision to turn pro comes on the heels of a long-term shoulder injury, sustained from an awkward fall into the boards in a January matchup against the Michigan Wolverines. The injury ended what was Savage’s first season as captain of the Michigan State Spartans, and limited him to just 11 points in 20 games on the season. He concludes his collegiate career with a combined 68 points in 125 games – split 30 points coming with Miami University of Ohio and 38 with the Spartans. Savage was lauded as a responsible, two-way center for both clubs and should find some immediate impact with the Americans, assuming he returns well from injury.

A move to Rochester will mark a reunion with head coach Michael Leone, who served as an assistant coach over Savage’s two years at the U.S. NTDP. Leone led Rochester to a 42-22-8 record and Division Final loss in his first year of pro coaching last season.

Other notes from around the league:

  • Washington Capitals forward Sonny Milano is back on the ice after an upper-body injury ended his season in November. He has been taking part in informal practices with his teammates recently, shares Sammi Silber of The Hockey News. Silber adds that Milano hopes to make a push back onto the Capitals roster at training camp. Milano was in the midst of earning a daily lineup role when he suffered his injury. He scored an encouraging 40 goals and 90 points in 179 games in three seasons between 2021 and 2024 – though each year was limited by injury. Questions remained about Milano’s durability and defensive acumen. He didn’t have a chance to dissuade those concerns last year, but seems to be getting an early jump at proving he can stick in the NHL this season.
  • The ECHL has announced the approval of an expansion team in Augusta, Georgia set to begin play in the 2027-28 season. This marks a return to The Garden City for the ECHL. Augusta previously served as home to the Augusta Lynx, who folded after 10 seasons in 2008. The new team will be owned by former NFL quarterback Tim Tebow, in partnership with David Hodges and Hodges Management Group, LLC. No team name or logo has been announced. The ECHL is also set to expand to New Mexico in the 2026-27 season. The league will grow to 32 clubs once both teams break ground, putting them on level-playing field with the AHL and NHL. That should allow for full partnership between three leagues. The Ottawa Senators and Columbus Blue Jackets were the only clubs without an ECHL affiliate in the 2024-25 season.

Gulutzan Focused On Making Stars More Physical

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The Dallas Stars are in the midst of a frustrating streak. They’ve lost in the Western Conference Finals in each of the last three seasons, including back-to-back losses at the hands of the Edmonton Oilers. In an effort to curb their bad luck, Dallas went directly to the source to fill their head coaching vacancy earlier this summer. They hired Oilers assistant Glen Gulutzan, who brings the sharp assessment of Dallas’ roster that only a Conference rival could have. In an interview with Sean Shapiro of the Dallas Magazine, Gulutzan shared that his key focus for the 2025-26 Stars will be playing more physical.

Gulutzan’s critique of Dallas’ style certainly lands at a good time. The Stars delivered the fewest hits in the league, at even-strength, last season (1,160 total hits). They were also on the receiving end of more hits than any other club (1,963 total hits received). It was the second-straight season that Dallas ranked dead-last in the NHL in terms of hits-given versus hits-received – but Gulutzan’s urge to address that weakness won’t take too much improvement. The Oilers have also been among the league’s most out-hit clubs, ranking second-to-last in the 2024-25 season and fifth-to-last in 2023-24.

Even with that standing, Gulutzan acknowledged how much a dash of physicality transformed the Oilers. He pointed directly to the growth of Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl over the last two seasons. McDavid recorded a career-high 118 hits in the 2023-24 season, while Draisaitl reached 58 hits, the second-highest mark of his career. Both players took a major step back in hits this season – McDavid recording just 40, and Draisaitl recording 23 – but star talent leaning into the physical game clearly inspired the Oilers lineup. Gulutzan told Shapiro:

You had to ask the elite players to use their skills and smarts to check, not to deliver big body checks, but to check and add a little physicality each shift… And the reality is that’s the evolution of that group. It happened because [McDavid and Draisitl] wanted it to happen, and reinforced it for everyone. I look at our team [in Dallas]. I’m putting the energy in the same spot

To their credit, Dallas does have their fair share of bruisers at the top of the lineup. Rookie Lian Bichsel managed an incredible 155 hits in just 38 games last season, confidently leading all NHL defensemen in hits-per-60 minutes played. The Stars also continue to receive heavy physicality from captain Jamie Benn, who has recorded at least 100 hits in three of the last four seasons – and 97 hits in his sole off-year. But Gulutzan will ask for more out of the rest of the team’s stars – a group likely to include Jason Robertson, Roope Hintz, Mikko Rantanen and Wyatt Johnston who managed 60, 53, 48, and 45 hits last season respectively.

A new brand of physicality could be the piece that pushes Dallas past their Western Conference foes. The Florida Panthers just won back-to-back Stanley Cups on the heels of high-pressure forechecking opening ground for their star scorers. That will be the mantra Dallas looks to adopt under new head coach Gulutzan, as they look to pave their way past the Western Conference for the first time since 2020 next season.

Hurricanes Hire Jesper Fast As Development Coach

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After confirming his retirement in June, former Hurricanes winger Jesper Fast is returning to the organization as a development coach, the team announced.

Fast’s career was truncated by a neck injury he sustained in Carolina’s final game of the 2023-24 regular season. He required surgery that sidelined him for the playoffs and kept him on injured reserve for the entirety of 2024-25 before his retirement announcement came a couple of months ago.

As such, 2025-26 will mark Fast’s sixth season affiliated with the organization in some capacity. The 33-year-old initially joined the Canes on a three-year, $6MM contract in free agency in 2020. He then signed a two-year, $4.8MM extension in 2023 that covered the end of his playing career.

The 6’1″ winger was one of the league’s best skaters when active, and he’ll look to bring that mentality to Carolina’s prospect pool in his new role. A sixth-round pick by the Rangers in 2010, he totaled 91 goals and 248 points in 703 career games while routinely serving as an adept penalty killer thanks to his great pace and above-average hockey sense.

Fast joins Daniel Bochner and Kevin McCarthy to round out the Canes’ group of development coaches. The trio serves under former NHL defenseman Peter Harrold, their director of player development.

Transaction Notes: Thompson, Korczak, Fusco

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Former Devils forward Tyce Thompson has signed a one-year deal in Kazakhstan with Barys Astana of the KHL, according to a team announcement.

Thompson, 26, is the younger brother of Sabres star Tage Thompson. He was a fourth-round pick by New Jersey in 2019 out of Providence College and appeared in 11 games for the club from 2020 to 2023, recording an assist and a -4 rating.

The speedy 6’1″, 194-lb winger spent most of his time in the Devils organization on assignment to AHL Binghamton/Utica, where he had 50 points in 98 games before he was traded to the Islanders for AHL depth winger Arnaud Durandeau early in the 2023-24 season. Thompson remained in the Islanders organization through the end of last season but saw his offensive effectiveness tumble with their affiliate in Bridgeport. He had just 35 points in 116 games for the Baby Isles after recording over half a point per game in the Devils’ system, taking on more of an agitator/checking role with a team-leading 102 PIMs last year.

As a result of his age and professional experience with a lack of NHL games under his belt, Thompson became a Group VI unrestricted free agent this offseason and was not re-signed by the Islanders. He now lands in the KHL with Barys, where he’ll make more than the $200K guarantee he had on his two-way deal with the Islanders last year.

Here are more minor moves from around hockey:

  • Ex-Rangers prospect Ryder Korczak is headed to Slovakia’s top league on a one-year deal with Vlci Zilina, the club announced on Facebook. Korczak, 23 in September, was a third-round pick by the Blueshirts in 2021. He turned pro out of WHL Moose Jaw at the end of the 2022-23 campaign and had 31 points in 107 games in parts of three seasons for AHL Hartford. He was traded to the Lightning in January for winger Lucas Edmonds. He finished the season with four points in 11 combined regular-season and playoff games for AHL Syracuse before being non-tendered by Tampa in June. With presumably no NHL or AHL offers on the table, the 5’10” center joins a club that gained promotion from Slovakia’s second division just one year ago.
  • Defenseman John Fusco, who came off the Maple Leafs’ reserve list last week, has signed an AHL deal with the Capitals’ affiliate in Hershey, the team announced yesterday. Fusco, 24, was a seventh-round pick by Toronto in 2020 but went unsigned coming off his senior season at Dartmouth last year. The undersized righty had 51 points in 112 career collegiate games with Harvard and the Big Green.

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